


give me your love

by anathebookworm



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-28 10:08:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,677
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17785406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anathebookworm/pseuds/anathebookworm
Summary: What if Lyla decided to hang out with the Diaz family in episode one instead of going home? After all, why bother with Skype when she could personally help Sean?Episodes 1 + 2 with a dash of fix-it and much more Lyla Park. Oh, and Mushroom lives. Anyone who doesn’t want her alive isn’t welcome here.





	give me your love

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve been waiting to see if someone else had the same idea, but I don’t want to wait anymore and decided to write it myself. I already wrote for Caulscott, pairs can’t get any rarer than that. Although I do hope Parkaz becomes canon at some point. ;)
> 
> Oh, and if you enjoy my work, you can always say hello on Twitter! I’m @anathebookworm and I’d love to chat!

The noise from the planes interrupted their conversation, making Lyla sigh.

“These fucking planes, man. I wanna hate them, but I’ll miss them so much if I move somewhere else,” she muttered, looking down for a moment. “Shit changes so fast. I get so emo sometimes, wondering what'll happen to us once we graduate. Will you still be my BFF?”

Sean looked at her and smiled sweetly—a bit different from what she was used from him, that’s for sure.

“Yeah, man. Friends forever,” he said.

“Yeah but...What happens if we go to different colleges? Or you get sick of me?”

He laughed this time. “You heard of the internet? No way distance can tear us apart. We're the freakin' fighters!”

This time, Lyla couldn’t help but laugh as well. “Yeah, you're right...Best freakin’ fighters forever...” After a moment, she got up and added, “Okay, it’s getting way late and I gotta pick out my outfit for tonight.”

Just as she started moving to give him a parting hug, Sean touched her arm and blushed. It definitely was enough to get her interested in whatever he was going to say next.

“So, listen…do you think you could stay a bit longer? Help me with my stuff? I don’t want to look like a loser tonight.”

She laughed. “I told you, I’m not a miracle worker.” He opened his mouth to protest, but Lyla shook her head. “Oh, look at you. Pouting like my Daniel. Yeah, I’ll help you. But it has to be quick!”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever…”

They bumped shoulders all the way inside the Diaz house, and she laughed to herself at how silly it all was. Still, she enjoyed it. So much. It was what tethered her to ground, to the present. If it weren’t for these moments, she’d probably…well. Her mother would probably put her back in the Bellevue clinic again.

The thoughts vanished from her mind when she saw the scene taking place in the Diaz household.

“—please, Judge Diaz. Be an example to the court and society and let us know: who deserves to eat this final Chock-O-Crisp?” Estaban said, smiling immensely at his sons. “Your adorable little brother, who eats about ten bags a week...or your poor suffering father...who slaves over a hot engine to provide his family with a home and a garage?”

Esteban had barely finished speaking when Daniel jumped excitedly, his hand up in the air.

“Me! Me!” Daniel turned to look at her. “Come on, Lyla, he listens to you. Tell him I deserve the Chock-O-Crisp!”

She bent down to give Daniel a kiss on the cheek.

“I can do much better,” she promised with a wink. Then she snatched the chocolate bar from Sean’s hand to give it to Daniel. “Here you go.”

“Awesome, I win!” Daniel cheered. “Thanks a bunch, Lyla.”

At the same time Sean groaned, Esteban winked at her. “Do us a favor, Lyla, and please marry him so we can have some peace in this house.”

She couldn’t help the snort that escaped when she saw Sean’s face reddening. That boy could blush so quickly, for the weirdest reasons. It never stopped to amuse her.

“I’m too great for him,” she said, grabbing Sean’s arm and pulling him towards his room. “It’s a shame. But maybe we can wait until Daniel is older. I could still become a Diaz girl...”

The last thing she heard before Sean closed the door was Esteban’s loud laugh.

“You shouldn’t encourage Daniel all the time,” he muttered. “He already loves you enough.”

“Aww, do I hear some jealousy?”

“No way.” Sean snorted. “You two can have your fun. I think your mental age is the same anyway.”

“Yeah, it’s definitely jealousy.” She plopped down on his bed, resting her legs. “So, how about this, you go to the kitchen choose some snacks, and I’ll see if I can find something decent for you to wear? Then we’ll see what you can say to try and win Jenn.”

“Fine, I’ll be back in a second.” After he closed the door again, she heard him discussing something with Daniel and smiled. She had always wanted to have a sibling…and sometimes she thought that these boys didn’t understand how important their bond was.

But she could help them. Or at least try. That’s what friends are for, right?

Yeah. And apparently they’re there to help clueless male friends in the task of impressing a girl. There were days she wanted to scream at Sean, see if he finally noticed she was a girl as well. But…nah. It wouldn’t be worth it, not really. Their friendship was her whole world, messing it up would crush her.

With a sigh, she moved around his room, looking for possible clothes. It wasn’t that hard, after all. Esteban probably helped Sean with most of his fashion choices, and that man really knew what he was doing. After she was finished, she looked around idly until she found a pack of condoms. Laughing, she decided it would definitely be funny to see Sean’s face when he found it in the pockets of his hoodie. He had discarded it on the floor, after all, left it alone with her…it wasn’t her fault that she was a mischievous spirit.

Sean came back a minute later, carrying his backpack. It was stuffed to the brim.

“I’ve got chips, soda, cookies, beer…” he announced, smiling happily at her and waving his backpack. “Oh, and Dad gave me some money to buy more supplies later. This is going to be super cool!”

“Look who’s getting excited!” She gestured at him, laughing. “I thought parties were too loud, too crowded and everybody was too wasted?”

“Well, yeah, but since you’ve convinced me to go…”

“I get it, don’t worry.” She waved so he’d come and sit with her. “Okay, so pretend I’m Jenn. What would you say?”

“Uh…”

“Ouch, Sean.” She slapped him playfully, though that reaction did sting a bit. “Do you need me to cover my face or something?”

He blushed. Again. It helped with her mood. “No! No, I don’t…I just...isn’t it weird?”

“Nothing’s weird between us. We’re way past that. Aren’t we?”

“I-I guess…”

“So what are going to say? You’re not saying it to Lyla, you’re saying it to Jenn.”

That… _definitely_ stung to say. But it was for their friendship. The greater good.

“Okay, okay.” Sean stroked his chin. “Hey, Jenn…uh, what’s up?”

She burst out laughing. “Try again. That was…”

“I sounded like a total loser.”

“Yeah.”

“Okay, so what about…” He coughed, trying to make his voice deeper. “Hey, you wanna...share my blanket?”

She didn’t even need to comment because he started slapping himself repeatedly. Trying to be helpful, Lyla offered, “Remember, you have to try not to be too thirsty.”

“I know! I just…I don’t know how to do this.”

“I can see that,” she said, swallowing a laugh.

“Well, rub it in, why don’t you. I don’t have any game, and she’s so cool…I don’t have a chance…”

Something about the way he said it made Lyla swallow her pride and scoot a bit closer to her friend. She took his hand between hers and sighed.

“You’re super cute, Sean,” she told him as seriously as she could, keeping her eyes locked with his. “Just be yourself. You want her to like you, the real you.”

He sighed as well, though he didn’t break eye contact. “You’re the only one who knows ‘the real me,’ Lyla.”

“Then…you can pretend she’s me.”

She wasn’t planning this. Really, she wasn’t. She’s wanted for something like this to happen for a while, but she wasn’t ever planning to act on some random feeling. But when he closed his eyes and leaned closer, her heart skipped a beat. Just as she closed her own eyes, prepared for the onslaught of feelings that would certainly invade her, someone opened Sean’s door.

“Sean, Sean!”

Daniel.

Of course.

How could she forget where they were? That his family was there, too?

It was for the best, though. If it had happened…

“I'm done, look! I made zombie blood! It's...um...corn syrup and food coloring...” Daniel said, excited and naïve as always. When he saw her, he brightened up even more. “Hey! Hi Lyla! I didn’t know you were still here!”

“She’s busy, okay?” Sean shoved Daniel outside. “Get out of my room.”

“I was just…”

“Not right now, Daniel!”

“I just…”

“You were just bugging the shit out of me again after I told you to knock? Yeah, I know.” He shut the door forcefully on Daniel’s face.

As soon as he reached Lyla again, a tentative smile on his face, she slapped him. Hard.

“What the fuck is your problem, Sean?”

He touched his stinging cheek, looking bewildered. “But, Lyla, I thought we—”

“You’re such an asshole. I wanted to see his zombie blood.”

Sean sighed, raised his hands and backed away from her until he was sitting on his chair. He hid his face between his hands for a moment. When he looked at her again, his eyes were growing misty.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I’ll make it up to him. I promise I will.” After a pause, he looked at her eyes. “I just thought…I don’t know. I don’t know what we were doing. I didn’t want him to interrupt it.”

“Listen, I’m your best friend,” she said, biting her tongue in embarrassment. “But I think that even our friendship needs some limits. I’m not here so you can practice what kissing is like or whatever you were trying to do.”

“But I wasn’t!” Sean exclaimed. “I wasn’t even thinking about Jenn. It was—”

_“Leave me alone! I’ll call my dad!”_

They both turned immediately to look at Sean’s window, where Brett and Daniel were arguing. It took Lyla a moment to process that right there, right in front of her eyes, Brett was holding Daniel’s arm. She was right behind Sean when he ran outside, everything except Daniel forgotten.

“Hey!” Sean shoved Brett hard. “Don’t ever touch my brother!”

As soon as she could, Lyla grabbed Daniel and hugged him. She was about to get him inside again when the fight escalated.

“Fuck you, Diaz! He got his fake blood shit all over my shirt...Look!” Brett yelled, pulling at his stained shirt.

Daniel managed to break free from her arms to yell at Brett. “I told you it was an accident! You better leave us alone!”

“Come on, Daniel, we need to get inside,” she tried to tell him, but the kid wouldn’t listen.

Brett kept advancing towards them, though. He wouldn’t have stopped if Sean hadn’t gotten in the way.

“Dude, step back! He didn't mean it, he's a fucking kid!”

“He's a fucking retard!”

In the next moment, Lyla wasn’t even sure if the words had escaped her mouth or Sean’s, “What...What did you just say?”

And then everything went to shit.

She could barely keep up with everything, and later, when asked about it, she would have trouble remembering. She felt herself grabbing Daniel again, trying to shield him while Sean and Brett fought on the ground. And then a police officer showed up—

And then Esteban—

And then—

Nothing.

 

* * *

 

She woke up when Sean shook her, his eyes desperate and wet. When she touched her own face, she felt the tears there. Along with it, she felt some blood from a cut on her forehead.

“Oh, thank God,” Sean said, hugging her tightly, hiding his face in her hair for a second. “I thought you…I thought I lost…not you, too…”

“I’m here,” she whispered back. When she saw Esteban, more tears leaked from her eyes. “Oh, God. Oh, no…”

“We have to go,” Sean said, pulling her to her feet. “We can’t stay here. They’ll think…they’ll blame…”

“I get it, Sean.”

“You don’t need to—”

“I do. I do,” she said. “I’ll go with you. Wherever you need to go.”

“Okay. Help me carry, Daniel, please…”

After that, everything became blurry again.

 

* * *

 

Her whole body hurt. They had been walking for two days, hiding whenever possible, sleeping wherever possible. Sean kept giving her looks that clearly said “you shouldn’t have gotten involved in this mess” whenever he wasn’t trying to keep Daniel in the dark. Or perhaps he himself wasn’t sure of what happened. Lyla knew she wasn’t.

Even now, thinking back to all that confusion, she couldn’t be certain of what she saw. If she saw anything, that is. She could’ve dreamed it all. But she couldn’t bring it up now, not when Daniel could freak out…

“I’m so tired,” Daniel said, stopping in his tracks. They had been going down this road for a while, and she honestly wasn’t sure where it’d take them. “I can’t walk anymore. We’ve been doing this for four days!”

Sean stopped as well, turning around to stare at his baby brother. “What? No, only two. C’mon, we can’t stop here.”

“But my feet are hurting…”

Lyla turned to Daniel, wrapping her arm around his shoulders and trying to offer what she assumed was a comforting smile.

“Hey, this is our adventure,” she told him. “We’re going camping! Just the three of us. You’ve always wanted to go out with us, right?”

“Yeah, but not like this…I didn’t know we’d get so tired,” he still complained.

“Look! Everybody's going to be...so stoked when they find out...how far you walked!” Sean said, smiling at Daniel as well.

Thankfully, this got a reaction and Daniel brightened up. “Really? Really? I bet Dad would be too! Do you think we've walked like, maybe a hundred miles?”

Lyla patted his head. “Probably two hundred!”

“Oh, awesome!” Daniel cheered. He slapped Sean’s arm suddenly and ran away. “Tag! I bet you can’t catch me!”

For a moment, Sean laughed and went after Daniel, indulging him. Lyla watched with a fond smile, finally able to see a peaceful scene in days. She wondered if she was doing the right thing, being here with them. Well, she couldn’t change it now. Like Sean said, the police…they wouldn’t understand.

For as much as she hated how her mom was sometimes, she missed her, too. She wished she could talk to Mom one more time, maybe tell her not to worry too much. At least here she could be useful. She wasn’t alone, panicking without being able to do anything. She shuddered just thinking about the possibility of Sean and Daniel going through this alone, while she was away, home…

“Hey.” Sean nudged her, breaking her train of thought. Ahead of them, Daniel was having some fun reading signs. “Are you okay?”

She sighed. “For real? I don’t know. Probably not. I just...wish I could remember what happened back there. We should...” Lyla gestured to Daniel. “You know, talk to him. It hurts to hear him asking about Esteban.”

“I know,” he said, sighing. “But I don’t want to worry him until we can figure stuff out. I was thinking that we could camp somewhere here, it looks safe enough. I haven’t seen any cars in a while.”

“Yeah.”

After a moment of walking in silence, Sean brushed his shoulder against hers. His eyes were lost, guilty. “I’m so sorry you got involved, I...I couldn’t leave you back there, but...we have nothing right now. I...I’m sorry, Lyla. You shouldn’t—”

“Are you kidding me? I’d much rather be here and help you two than be alone back there,” she said, interrupting him. “We’re the best freakin’ fighters, right? We stick together. No matter what. I love the two of you too much to leave you alone.”

He smiled, and for a moment Lyla was sure she saw his eyes becoming misty. That was one of the things she loved the most about Sean—he wasn’t ever afraid to cry, to let others know that he, in fact, had a heart.

“I love you, too,” he said. His smile grew bigger, the biggest she had seen on his face since...everything went to shit. “I’m sorry you missed that party, though.”

Lyla laughed, bumping shoulders with him. “You’ll just have to find a way to make it up to me. Hmm, maybe another milkshake like the one from yesterday?”

She could swear she heard both of their bellies growling.

“Man, that was great,” he said, moaning. “I’d give anything for another one!” Then his smile dropped. “Well, not everything. All we have now is...what, sixty dollars? Maybe a bit more? We’ll need to make that last for days.”

Lyla felt her own mood growing sober, so she took Sean’s hand in hers. “We’ll figure something out. I don’t care about eating as long as we keep Daniel safe and healthy.”

“Let’s see for how long we can do that,” he said, sighing. He did squeeze her hand, though. “For what it’s worth, though, I’m glad you’re here.”

Before she could answer, Daniel waved for them to walk closer to him.

“Look, I found a sign!” He pointed towards a sign that read _Trout Spring Trail_. “Is this where we’re going?”

Lyla reached him before Sean could. “Looks promising,” she said.

“Yeah,” Sean agreed. “But we’ll still need to walk a bit more to get there.” When he saw Daniel’s pout, he added, “Not much.”

“Okay,” Daniel said, looking a bit dejected. “Hey, Lyla, do you want to play with me?”

She smiled. “Sure. What are we playing?”

She definitely wasn’t expecting when Daniel grabbed her arm and pretended to bite it.

“I’m a zombie and I’m going to eat you!” He announced, chasing her around while she laughed.

“Not fair!” She told him, still indulging him and playing. “You’re too fast!”

Suddenly, Sean grabbed Daniel’s waist and tickled him.

“No, no!” Daniel protested, though he didn’t stop laughing. “You’re supposed to be on my side! We should hunt Lyla together!”

Sean raised one eyebrow at her. “Oh, yeah? Seems like fun to me. Lead the way, Sir Daniel!”

They kept playing together while walking, laughing together. It felt great to Lyla—after everything that they witnessed, she was afraid they might have been broken forever.

They only stopped when they reached the beginning of the trail, when Sean pointed to a bathroom ahead of them.

“Okay, dude,” he started, looking at Daniel. “Do you have to use the bathroom?”

“No!” Daniel protested immediately. “It smells real bad.”

“Yeah, but at least it’s safe,” Lyla pointed out. “We’ll wait outside for you, don’t worry. It’s better than a tree, isn’t it?”

“I’m not sure...” Daniel muttered while going inside the bathroom. He complained while in there, making gagging noises and all. When he came back, his face was sour. “That sucked.”

“I bet it wasn’t as bad as a school bathroom,” Lyla said, smiling.

Daniel gagged again. “It was.”

Both Lyla and Sean laughed, and she wrapped one arm around Daniel while they kept going. It was...peaceful. Quiet. The sort of place that could have triggered one of her anxiety attacks, but for some reason it hadn’t. Just thinking about her depression made her squeeze Daniel a bit, trying to keep herself grounded. He needed her to be levelheaded. And she would be there for him.

Daniel broke away from her embrace and ran towards some bushes.

“Hey Sean, Lyla, I found some berries!” He exclaimed, happily gesturing to the bushes. “Can I taste one, please?”

She was about to go taste the berries for him, see if they were safe or if she at least recognized them, but Sean beat her to it. He tasted one of the berries and smiled.

“They’re okay,” he told Daniel. “Go ahead.”

He didn’t need to be told twice. She smiled as she watched Daniel eating the berries, having the time of his life, oblivious to all of their problems.

She and Sean found a picnic table nearby and sat down, watching Daniel looking for similar berries to the one he was allowed to eat.

Looking at him, seeing someone so pure, so innocent and naive...she felt tears prickling her eyes. God, she wished she could be like Daniel again. She’d protect that boy forever, no matter what it took, she decided. His innocence wouldn’t be shattered by this world.

Lyla didn’t even realize she was crying until Sean hugged her with one arm while his free hand brushed her tears away. She didn’t hesitate to melt into his embrace, trying to convince herself that they were safe, that everything would be okay.

It was incredibly sweet when she felt Sean pressing a kiss on top of her head. She knew he didn’t have issues with demonstrating affection, but this was different. This wasn’t just affection. This was someone trying to help her glue herself back together.

“I’m sorry...” he whispered. “I know you said I shouldn’t be, but I am. I promise, Lyla, we’ll find a way to make this work. I’ll be here for you. Forever.”

She squeezed his middle in a tight embrace.

“I know, Sean,” she whispered back. “I know.”

A new pair of arms enveloped both of them, and Lyla was a bit startled when she saw Daniel hugging them and offering a confused expression.

“Is it hugging time?” He asked. So innocent, so enchanting...she couldn’t help but laugh a little. “Are you laughing at me?”

“No, Daniel, never,” she said, hugging him as well. “I love you.”

He blushed and looked away—and it made her laugh more when she remembered he had this silly crush on her. When he took a step back, he said, “Well, can we keep going? I want to find our camp so we can rest. I’m tired.”

Sean laughed, messing Daniel’s hair. “Yeah, you might have mentioned that already.”

 

* * *

 

Everything turned out okay, after all. They found a secure cave to stay the night, taught Daniel how to skip stones, ate some of the food they had packed for the party. It didn’t take long until Daniel declared he was ready to sleep and sandwiched himself between Sean and Lyla. She’d be lying if she said she didn’t find it endearing. Daniel’s love for them both was so clear, it made her heart ache.

“Do you want to sleep, too?” Sean asked, making her turn her eyes to him instead of his baby brother. “You look almost dead already.”

“Jeez, thank you so much,” she said, pretending to be offended. “You look like shit, too.”

“I feel like shit.”

She frowned, reaching a hand to touch his. “You did great today. Daniel’s okay. We did it. At least for today.”

“Yeah. At least we can say I’m not always a total asshole.”

Lyla sighed. “I’m sorry I yelled at you that time. You’re a good brother. At least, when you want to be,” she added with a playful wink.

“Yeah, whatever.” Sean rolled his eyes. “You’re not a terrible big sister either.”

“Is that my title now?”

Sean laughed. “It was always your title. Although he does have this crush on you. Must be a family thing, you know.”

Her laughter died down.

“What do you mean?”

“Ah, you know. Please tell me you know. I don’t want to say this out loud.”

This only made her frown deeper.

“I’m not following, Sean.”

“Daniel isn’t the only Diaz to have a cr—”

Before he could finish, Daniel moaned in his sleep, opening his eyes. When Lyla turned to him, she saw he was crying. Immediately, she hugged him, shushing him.

“It’s okay, Daniel, you’re safe. We’re here, you’re safe,” she repeated several times.

“Dad...?” Daniel asked groggily, looking around in disorientation. “Where are we?”

“The park,” Sean provided, hugging Daniel as well. “Remember our amazing day? We’re okay.”

“We...are?” He yawned. “Okay...”

“We won’t leave you, Daniel,” Lyla said. “You just had a bad dream.”

“You promise?”

Sean was the one to whisper a broken, “Of course we promise. Go back to sleep, bro. You’re safe.”

After another yawn, Daniel nodded and laid down again. This time, he snaked his arms around Lyla, seeking protection and warmth. She smiled and shrugged when Sean raised one eyebrow.

Together, wordlessly, the three of them huddled closer together until the day swept the night away.

 

* * *

 

The next morning, they woke up earlier than usual, but also…not as cranky as usual. Daniel was happy and chatty, apparently having forgotten about his bad dream. Lyla couldn’t say she wasn’t glad for that, honestly.

“Do you think we’ll find a milkshake shop on the way?” he asked her, looking up eagerly.

She chuckled. “Who knows, Daniel. Never say never, right?”

“Ah yes, the forest secret milkshake factory,” Sean said with a chuckle. “Keep dreaming, dude. Let’s walk a little more. There'll be a rest stop or something where we can buy food. I’m sure of it.”

“Okay.” Daniel nodded. “Enough for the three of us?”

“Yeah, of course,” Lyla assured him. She hoped so, at least. Her stomach hurt from the lack of food, but she’d give everything to Daniel first. She was sure Sean would, too. At least he wouldn’t be hungry…

After a while, they reached a gas station. A family was eating and chatting in a table nearby, and she could see a mini mart as well. So much food…so many supplies. All kinds of it. Lyla could even see clothes inside the mart. She wouldn’t be against a spare change of clothes. At least this way they’d be able to wash one pair of clothes while wearing another.

“Oh, look!” Daniel pointed towards the mini mart. “We can get food now!”

Sean patted his shoulders. “Yeah, we will. We should find a map too, so we can find the best route to keep moving.” Then he pointed towards a small restroom in a corner. “We should wash up first, though.”

The three of them got inside at once, receiving looks from the family eating nearby. Lyla could swear she heard the man muttering to his wife, “We came all the way here to get away from this kind of people, and they follow us here…”

She huffed, swallowing the urge to tell him where he could stuff his opinions. Daniel tugging on the sleeves of her shirt helped to keep her focused on the task at hand, too.

Sean grabbed their water bottles from his backpack and filled them with water, smiling in triumph.

“Free water for us,” he said. “For a change.”

She smiled back at him and nudged Daniel towards the sink. He shivered as soon as she splashed some water on his face to clean all the mud from yesterday.

“Brr, cold!” Daniel complained.

“It’s just for a second,” she promised, finishing her work. After she dried Daniel’s face, she worked on cleaning herself.

It was only when she was done that she noticed Sean watching, a slight blush on his cheeks.

“Do you need help in washing your face, too?” She teased him, winking.

She definitely wasn’t expecting Sean’s blush to turn deeper.

“Uh…” he muttered, scratching the back of his neck. “I’m good, thanks.”

“Doesn’t look like it,” she kept teasing, turning on the water faucet again so she could clean his cheeks and forehead. “There you go now, all clean. You almost look like a decent person again.”

For a long moment, Sean didn’t say anything. Then his eyes lowered to her lips, and she saw him swallowing nervously. Or…maybe not “nervously,” if the look he was giving her was anything to go by. She felt her heart picking up speed and unconsciously looked at his lips, too.

It was invitation enough, because suddenly he was closing his eyes and dropping his head to level with hers and—

Daniel cleared his throat. “What are you two doing?”

Sean groaned, turning to bang his head on the wall on his left. Lyla laughed, shaking her head. Trust Daniel to know how to handle things like this. _It was for the best_ , she told herself again. _They didn’t have time for this sort of thing now._

“Nothing, dude,” Sean muttered. “Gee.”

“Then let’s go get our food!”

She kept laughing while the brothers bickered, but as soon as they left the restroom, the family stopped talking abruptly.

“Uh oh, here they come,” the man said, not bothering to whisper at all. “Better hide our stuff before it’s too late.”

“Excuse me, what did you say?” Lyla asked, her face flushed in anger. “We’re not here to steal from anyone, okay? What the hell is wrong with you people?”

“ _Excuse you_ ,” he rebuffed. “We’re in the middle of something particular. Thank you. I thought we left Berkeley to get away from this…”

“C’mon Lyla, it’s not worth it,” Sean said, tugging on her hand. “It’s not even the first time it happens.” He turned to the family and offered a somewhat apologetic smile. “Sorry, we didn’t mean to bug you.”

She was seething when they moved away. “You should’ve let me tell them that they’re wrong about us! We’re not criminals!”

“Yeah, but fighting with everyone who’s prejudiced won’t get us anywhere,” he argued. “It’ll only slow us down. And hey, we don’t need to listen to them. We know the truth.”

“Whatever…”

Daniel opened the door to the mini mart, getting inside and already running around to explore. With a sigh, Lyla nodded to Sean and they went after Daniel.

“Hello there,” a grey-haired woman greeted, smiling at the group.

“Hi,” Lyla said, waving a little. Sean echoed her a moment later, and the woman looked the other way, satisfied that they acknowledged her.

Suddenly, Daniel noticed the Chock-O-Crisp display and grabbed both Lyla and Sean by their hands, showing them the chocolate.

“Look, they have Chock-O-Crisp!” He said, his eyes brightening. “Can you guys get one for me, please? _Please?_ ”

Lyla laughed. “Sure, kid. But let Sean and I take a look at everything else they have here, okay?”

“Okay,” Daniel said with a sigh.

Before Daniel could move somewhere else, Sean pointed to a machine on the side. “Look, dude, they’ve got a Power Bear machine! Do you want to try it?”

“I can? For real?”

“Sure!” Sean winked. He handed his wallet to Lyla before giving a few dollars to Daniel. “Can you start shopping for us? I’ll join in a sec.”

“Yeah, of course.” Lyla picked her own wallet to check how much they still had. “Looks like we can stock up. We have seventy dollars combined.”

Sean nodded. “Looks good enough.”

“C’mon, Sean! Why are you taking so long?” Daniel complained from his place near the claw machine.

“Coming!”

Lyla watched the two of them try—and fail—one time before she moved around the mart, picking up supplies for their trip. They still had no idea where exactly they were going, but she knew it was a long road ahead of them. They’d need all the supplies they could get—especially things that could last for a while.

“Do you need a bag?” The grey-haired woman asked. “I’m sorry I overheard, it just looks like you might need to carry a lot.”

“Yes, that’d help,” Lyla said with a smile. The woman handed her a shopping bag. “Thank you so much.”

“I don’t want to grill you or anything, but you and the boys don’t look like from here.”

Lyla sighed, trying to force a friendly demeanor. “Yeah, that’s right. We’re on a roadtrip, you know? My…uh…boyfriend and I are taking his brother out, so he can…get used to us being together.” It was a very stupid lie, and she was very thankful that Sean and Daniel couldn’t hear her, but it was also the only thing she managed to say.

“I see,” the woman said, nodding. “I’m just making sure you’re all okay. The road can be dangerous sometimes…”

“Don’t worry, we’re okay,” Lyla assured her. “Thanks again.”

“Call me if you need anything, honey.”

With a final nod—and a relieved sigh—Lyla walked away. She grabbed two Chock-O-Crisp bars for Daniel, two Mac n’ Cheese they could eat later and two sodas. When she made her way to the back of the mart, she saw the hot-dogs and decided to make two—the boys would probably enjoy it. Finally, she grabbed three shirts from the rack (one for each one of them, since they definitely needed a spare) and a sleeping bag Daniel could use.

When Lyla made her way back to the woman, she put the bag between them. It looked…huge.

“Looks like you’re all set to go,” the woman said.

“Yeah, I…think so.”

After counting the items, the woman turned to show her the value of everything she chose. “There’s the damage.”

It was…too much. $83,68, to be exact. Lyla counted the money she and Sean had, her face falling. That was thirteen dollars more than what they had. She’d have to ditch the sleeping bag, but…Daniel needed it. He couldn’t keep sleeping on the floor.

“Oh, honey,” the woman started, looking sweetly at her. “You don’t have enough, do you?”

Lyla looked at her boys, both of them engrossed in their chat. She felt her eyes welling up with tears. They needed this, they needed it.

Before she could say anything, the woman patted her hand. “It’s okay. How much do you have?”

Lyla showed her everything, their grand treasure of seventy dollars. The woman nodded, took the money from her and handed Lyla all of her purchases.

“I don’t…I don’t understand…” Lyla stuttered, looking at the purchases and at the woman.

“Girls should look out for each other, shouldn’t them?” The woman smiled. “It’s a gift. These boys look like they’d be completely lost without you, so do me a favor and take care of them. Okay?”

“I…will. I promise,” Lyla said, rubbing her eyes. “Thank you so much, ma’am.”

The woman winked. “Don’t mention it. Seriously, don’t. My husband wouldn’t like it, I’m afraid. Stubborn man…”

Lyla smiled, and then a bark from the woman’s right caught her attention. She turned around and saw a small, white and brown puppy. Her eyes softened, and she waved to her boys.

“Hey, Daniel! Come here, I found a puppy!”

Daniel was by her side in a second, Sean right behind him.

“Aww, a puppy!” Daniel cooed, bending down to pet it. “Super cute!”

Lyla got back up to lean against Sean. “I think it’s hard to say who’s cuter—the puppy or Daniel,” she mock-whispered to her friend.

He laughed. “Yeah, sure.”

“Is he yours?” Daniel asked the shopkeeper, still petting the puppy.

“She. It’s a she,” she corrected. “But no…someone left her down the road. If I saw who did that, it'd be the last time...”

“Oh no! She must be so sad,” Daniel said with a sigh. He turned to Lyla and Sean. “Can we keep the puppy? Please?”

The woman shook her head before either Lyla or Sean could answer. “Oh, honey...We need to have an adult take care of her...”

“I’m sorry, Daniel,” Lyla said, patting his shoulder. “We’d love to, but she’s right. The puppy needs someone who can look after her, and we really can’t.”

“Aww, this sucks.”

“Sorry, dude,” Sean said. “Gotta listen to Lady Lyla, she knows what she’s saying.” He bumped shoulders with her playfully, making her roll her eyes.

“Come on now, boys, we already have everything we need,” Lyla said, pulling them towards the door. On their way, Sean grabbed one of the free maps the shopkeeper had. She waved goodbye at them, smiling.

When they made it outside, the table the racist family was occupying was now taken by a man. He wore a red hoodie and was deeply engrossed in his computer, muttering to himself while writing something.

Daniel approached him first, tapping his shoulder. “Hi, sir. Do you think we could sit here with you? We just want to eat for a second…”

“Daniel!” Sean exclaimed, running towards his brother. “I’m sorry, sir, my brother likes to talk too much. We didn’t mean to—”

“Oh, it’s alright!” The man opened a big smile and gestured to the table. “Please, have a seat. I’m just working for a bit.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, of course. I wouldn’t mind the company!” He offered his hand to Sean and then to Lyla. “I’m Brody, by the way.”

“I’m Sean,” the older teen said. “This is my brother, Daniel, and my…friend, Lyla.”

“Nice to meet you all!” He said. “I'm kind of an online traveling journalist...”

“Oh.” Daniel frowned. “What does this mean?”

Brody laughed. “Just a fancy name for someone who drives around in a car...writing about people and...stuff. There's a few websites that pay me for these papers, since I know how to write. Are the three of you traveling?”

“Yeah,” Sean answered. “We’re on the road. Going south.”

“Good for you. The best way to learn is on the road...The earlier the better. Well, I'd love to talk and avoid work all day but...I'm already up against a deadline.” He turned back to his computer, and the three of them made themselves comfortable on the table.

When Lyla showed her purchases to the boys, Daniel brightened up at the sight of his beloved chocolate.

“Chock-O-Crisp!” He exclaimed. “Thank you so much, Lyla. You’re the best.”

“Of course, kid,” she said. “You deserve it.”

“Sean helped me get a Power Bear, too!” Daniel showed her his new toy. “See? It’s awesome. And now I have chocolate _and_ a Power Bear.”

“Lyla, this is so much…” Sean said, looking in awe at everything. “This will last for days. And you found clothes, too! You really must be a witch.”

“Not just a love witch, but also a shopping witch,” she said with a wink and a laugh. “Now, what you two say about eating these hot-dogs before they go cold?”

They scarfed everything down quietly, Sean sharing his hot-dog with Lyla while Daniel had fun with his. When she noticed a splash of ketchup on Sean’s nose, she giggled and cleaned it with her thumb. He blushed, the exact same reaction she had been getting for days.

After a while, Brody excused himself and left to his car, leaving the three of them to have a moment alone to plan where they’d be going next.

“Hello, kids,” a voice startled them. When Lyla turned to look who it was, she saw a tall, grey-haired man. “Looks like you’re out camping.”

“Yeah,” Sean said nervously, his hands taking hold of both Daniel’s and Lyla’s. “Just going over trails and…stuff.”

“Seems dangerous to be out here all alone,” the man said. “But maybe you’re the ones who need to be watched.”

“What do you mean?” Lyla asked despite the warning squeeze Sean gave her hand. “We’re just eating what we bought. And the map was free.”

“I see.” The man sneered at her. “Maybe we should go inside them, ask if you paid for everything. We don’t tolerate shoplifters, you know.”

In a second, they had everything stored inside their backpacks and both Lyla and Sean were shielding Daniel, keeping him behind them.

“Sorry, but we really need to leave.”

“Nope. You’re going inside with me right now,” the man insisted, pushing Sean’s chest with his index finger. “Don’t make this worse, kids. Or I could give you a lot of trouble…”

Lyla shoved Daniel at the same time Sean yelled, “Run, Daniel! Run!”

Everything happened incredibly fast after that—Daniel ran towards the shop, Sean was pushed by the man and, when she tried to help, the man accidentally (or maybe not accidentally) slapped her face, sending her backward.

“DON’T TOUCH HER!” Sean yelled, only for the man to grab his arm and twist it painfully.

“Help!” Lyla screamed. “HELP!”

And then things became even faster. Brody—the man who was nice to them earlier—somehow must’ve heard her, because he showed up and pushed the other man away from Sean. The nice shopkeeper exited the store as well, looking horrified.

“Hank!” she exclaimed. “What in the world are you doing? Let these kids go!”

“These are fugitives, Doris!” Hank said, struggling to get Brody away from him. “We have to call the police!”

“Oh, can you prove what you’re saying?” Brody asked, his face flushing in anger. “Or are you just saying that because you’re seeing three kids on their own?”

“These are two Mexican thieves and an Asian bitch! Of course they’re fugitives, they’re the reason we need to build that wall—”

Before Hank could finish, Brody punched him in the face. Doris screamed and ran towards Hank, who had blood running down his nose.

“You’re the one who should be arrested, you racist asshole!” Brody exclaimed.

“You better leave now before I call the cops on you!”

“Go!” Doris said, looking at Lyla with pleading eyes. “Go, please.”

With Sean’s help, she got up from the ground just in time for Daniel to come running towards them, hugging Sean’s backpack to his chest. Brody ushered them all away, into the woods, where his car was parked.

“Get in! Hurry up, before he catches us...” Brody opened his door and gestured for the three to get inside.

“Fuck,” Sean said with a sigh once they were safe inside, Brody already driving them away. “That dude…he went crazy…we didn’t do anything, I swear…we…”

“You don’t need to explain,” Brody interrupted. “I believe in you.”

Lyla made herself comfortable in the back of the car, Daniel leaned against her shoulders, his eyes already closing. He yawned when she wrapped her arms around him. However, when she tried to take the blanket he was currently hugging to cover them both, it…barked?

“Err…” Daniel blushed, looking around in a bit of desperation. “Uh, oh…”

“What’s under the blanket?” Sean asked, turning around to look at his brother. “C’mon, I’m not stupid. Show it to me.”

Still leaning against her, Daniel tried his best innocent smile, but when he moved the blanket away to reveal the puppy they met at the mini mart, Sean groaned, hiding his face in his hands.

“Daniel…” He muttered. “Are you for real?”

“What do you mean? We saved her!” Daniel announced, turning to Lyla for support. “We’re heroes now. Right, Lyla?”

She petted the puppy with a laugh before nodding to Daniel. “I guess you could say that.”

“You better take care of her, dude,” Sean said.

Daniel winked at Lyla. “I will. And Lyla will help me, because she’s much nicer than you.”

Brody laughed loudly, making Sean roll his eyes again.

Using the moment as a distraction, Daniel asked, “So, what should we call her?”

“Since you saved her, I think you should choose,” Brody said, looking at them for a second.

“I agree,” Lyla said.

“Oh cool! Let's see...How about... _Mushroom?_ She totally looks like a mushroom!”

Lyla laughed, but petted the puppy—Mushroom—again. “That’s cute. I like it.”

“Yeah, it’s okay,” Sean said.

“Then that’s her name,” Daniel declared solemnly. Then he yawned again. “I’m tired now, though…”

Lyla adjusted them so Mushroom was resting against both her and Daniel and covered the three of them with the blanket. When she was satisfied with her work, she kissed the top of Daniel’s head.

“Let’s sleep for a moment,” she said. “I’m so ready to crash.”

She barely finished her sentence before Daniel was fast asleep, snoring. It didn’t take long for her to follow suit.

 

* * *

 

As it turned out, they decided to travel to Sean and Daniel’s maternal grandparents, the Reynolds. Lyla had never personally met them, but judging from the permanent scowl on Sean’s face, they most likely were...interesting. She did meet Karen back in the day, was around when the woman left her family behind, and she dearly hoped the Reynolds weren’t like their daughter.

They didn’t have a lot of options, though, so they couldn’t complain. Brody told them he had some gigs near Beaver Creek and could take them there, which she appreciated a lot. For the night, though, they would be staying at this motel, Three Seals, so they could be prepared for the long trip ahead. Brody got one room for himself and another for the three of them, which suited Lyla very well.

While Brody played with Daniel and Mushroom, Lyla sat with Sean, facing the beach ahead of them. He had tears running down his cheeks, though he was valiantly trying to hide them. After witnessing his suffering for too long, she wiped his tears with her fingers and took both of his hands between hers.

“Sean,” she started. “Please talk to me.”

“I...I miss Dad so much,” he said with a hiccup. “Brody said we should tell Daniel, and I know he’s right, but I-I can’t. I can’t make Daniel hate me...I can’t break him like this...”

With tears running down her own face, Lyla grabbed Sean by the shoulders and hugged him close.

“I’m here, Sean,” she whispered. “I love you. I love Daniel. I’ll help you tell him. We can do this. Together. We’re the freakin’ fighters, nothing can beat us.”

He kept crying, squeezing her shoulders while burying his face in her hair.

“We’ll do it tonight,” she said. “We’ll tell everything to Daniel. It’ll be okay.”

“Do you...do you promise?”

“Of course I do.”

He nodded, finally letting go of her. He kept his hands in hers, though.

“Thank you, Lyla,” he whispered. “I love you so much...”

She squeezed his hands. “I know. I’ll never leave.”

“I...I really love you, Lyla,” he repeated. “Not just as my best friend. All this time on the road...everything we went through...I wouldn’t have done it without you. I love you. I’m sorry I...didn’t see it sooner.”

It was funny, because ever since they started this dance around each other, she was the one who kept making him blush. This time, though, she knew her face was the one that was red. To be fair, Sean’s was, too.

“Oh, Sean...”

He shook his head, not allowing her to talk. “I’m sorry. I know this fucks everything, I shouldn’t have said anything, but I...this...everything that’s happening...it made me realize that we could die at any second. I don’t want to die without letting you know. Please tell me I didn’t fuck our friendship up.”

He looked at her pleadingly. Sean always wore his heart in his sleeve, but this was different. Deeper. More important. After taking a look to see that Daniel and Brody we’re still playing, not looking at them at all, she grabbed Sean’s cheeks with her hands and kissed him.

It took them both by surprise, how bold she was acting, but she didn’t regret it. Especially when he clumsily tried to kiss her back, both of them sharing their very first kiss with each other. Everything seemed so far away, but this moment...it was one she’d hold dearly to her heart. She’d remember it when times were tough. Their clumsiness, the way their tears mixed together, the way Sean held her waist, probably not knowing what to do with his hands.

It was perfect.

When they broke apart, he rested his forehead against hers.

“I love you, too,” she whispered, making him smile and kiss her again.

They took their time with this, exploring each other, learning together. It was sweet, so very sweet. Everything she had ever wanted. If Sean’s goofy smile was anything to go by, it was great for him, too.

It ended too soon, though, when Brody and Daniel came back with Mushroom, ready to go to their rooms to sleep. Brody winked at them, smiling from ear to ear. Daniel looked confused and...slightly disgusted. Oh, well, he’d get used to it at some point. He would...right?

The highlight of the night, however, was when they passed by room 14, where a couple was very interested in allowing everyone to hear them while they...had their fun.

“Sean...I hear something coming from there,” Daniel said, pointing to the door. “It sounds like a fight.”

Sean’s face reddened immediately. “They’re not fighting.”

Thank God, Lyla thought, that Brody was chatting with the owner of the place instead of accompanying them right now.

Daniel looked even more curious. “Oh yeah? What are they doing, then?”

For a moment, Lyla was sure Sean would lie. Or maybe completely ignore Daniel. But he swallowed once, twice, looked at her briefly before blurting, “Well, Daniel, they’re having sex.”

Daniel’s reaction was instantaneous: he gagged and looked away.

“Shut up!” He exclaimed. “Gross...”

Lyla shook her head at Sean, trying very hard not to smile while they made their way to their room for the night. Before they opened the door, Daniel turned to look at them very seriously.

“We need rules since we’re sharing the room,” he said. “I saw...you two...ugh, kissing. You guys have to promise not to do...that thing the other people were doing...while I’m here. Seriously.”

While Sean looked like he was ready to faint from embarrassment, Lyla burst out laughing.

“Trust me, Daniel, we’re not going to do anything like that,” she said. “I promise.”

Daniel looked sternly at her before nodding. “Okay, I believe in you.”

Then he went inside, carrying Mushroom in his arms, and claimed one of the beds.

Sean looked mortified when she nudged him inside.

“That dude...he has no filter,” Sean muttered, shaking his head. “I swear, he always speaks exactly what he’s thinking.”

She laughed and, together, they prepared a warm bubble bath for Daniel. Only when they were alone once again did they start planning how to explain to Daniel what happened in Seattle. It wasn’t going to be easy, Lyla knew.

 

* * *

 

They were so damn lucky that Brody had his own room for the night, because otherwise they’d have so much explaining to do.

When they told Daniel, he...freaked out completely. He screamed and each time he spoke, the lights flickered and furniture flew around. Everything was bending to his will, it was like Daniel could control anything around them. The angrier he got, the more everything shook.

It took them so long to calm him down, hug him and shield him from the world, promise they’d always be honest from now on...

And that was when Lyla realized that their list of problems just became a bit bigger—now they weren’t just fugitives, they also had to hide Daniel. Hide his...powers or...whatever...from everyone. It was going to be hell, driving with Brody to Oregon without letting him realize their brand new secret.

But they had to do it.

It was their only choice.

And now, more than ever, they needed a safe haven. Somewhere they could understand what was happening to Daniel...

Lyla fell asleep that night in Sean’s arms along with Daniel, listening while her...friend...boyfriend...told a story to his brother.

_Once upon a time..._

_In a wild, wild world, there were two wolf brothers, living in their home lair with their papa wolf._

_They all lived happily together...but...but one day, hunters took their dad away._

_The brothers thought they were alone, but another friendly wolf was with them. She promised to follow them, help them with everything._

_The three of them loved each other, and they needed to find a new home. So they started a journey through the great big forest_...

 

* * *

 

Daniel seemed to never grow tired of listening to Sean’s story. Lyla had to admit, she was the same. Every night, Daniel would ask his big brother to tell the same story all over again. Every night, Sean would comply. And every night, she’d be there, listening along with Daniel.

Tonight, they were alone. They were supposed to reach Beaver Creek next morning, and Brody was speeding things up with his employer. He spent the last three days working on a new article, and they couldn’t complain. He was doing them a favor, after all.

Sean had just reached Daniel’s favorite part of the story, _“That's when the big brother discovered...that the little one...was not an ordinary wolf...but a superwolf!”_

Daniel’s eyes were wide, a smile opening up on his face. Lyla smiled as well, happy that her baby boy was enjoying himself. Ever since he learned the truth about Esteban, it was like…something had died inside him. He was excited with his new powers, but he was also withering. She was afraid of what would happen if he…if something happened…and he turned out to be like her. Her mood swings, her depression…she didn’t want that for anyone.

Her thoughts distracted her long enough that she missed the end of the story, and when she turned to look at Daniel again, he was fast asleep.

Sean chuckled, adjusting his brother on the hotel bed.

“He’s getting super tired now that we started training with him,” he said. “I think he’s enjoying it, but it always makes him tired.”

“But he’s also progressing,” Lyla said with a smile, gesturing to Sean’s sketchbook. “He’s managing to lift bigger things now.”

“Yeah, but it’s getting harder to hide from Brody what Daniel can do…” Sean sighed. “We might need to come up with some rules soon.”

“You’re probably right.” Lyla got up from the bed and opened her backpack. “So, do you want to sit outside and smoke a bit? I might or might not still have some weed.”

Sean was on his feet immediately. “Seriously? You still have some?”

She waved the weed in front of his nose. “Oh, I do.”

In no time, they were sitting outside, leaning against each other and enjoying their smoke. Lyla looked inside the room once, making sure both Daniel and Mushroom were still sleeping. Their little puppy was always glued to Daniel’s side, keeping him company. She seemed to be enjoying his newfound powers as well—he kept doing tricks to amuse her and lifting food for her.

“This is…crazy,” Sean said, his head lolling to the side. “It feels like we had our last smoke years ago.”

“Dude, I know,” she said with a chuckle. “I need this more often. I feel like I’m going crazy.”

“Considering what we saw these last few days, we might really be going crazy. Starting to see shit and all.”

She laughed. “Do you think there are others like Daniel?”

“Honestly? I don’t know,” he said with a shrug. “On one hand, I don’t think so—people would’ve found out by now if super kids were going around doing impossible stuff. But at the same time, they could be hiding it. We’re hiding it, why others couldn’t?”

“I heard some stuff once, you know,” she said. “Do you remember when Brody stopped by that little town, Arcadia Bay? I heard whispers. Or maybe I was too stoned and made it up. I don’t know, but apparently someone there remembers seeing two moons, dead whales littering the beach, a freaking tornado destroying the city…”

“Sounds like you’re making this up.” Sean laughed. “The city was perfectly fine, how could someone remember something that never happened?”

“If they were able to time travel, they would.”

“See, this is crazy. Crazier than Daniel moving shit with his mind.”

Lyla joined him when he laughed.

“Well, you can’t prove it,” she said with a shrug. “It could be real, dude. We’ll never know.”

After a moment of silence, Lyla laid down on the floor, staring at the starry night. Sean joined her a moment later, and his free hand found hers. Maybe the craziest part of these last few days was the fact that they were now a thing. She couldn’t label it yet, probably would never be able to label it, but _something_ was going on.

“You know,” Sean started, squeezing her hand. “If I had a blanket right now, I’d ask you to share it with me.”

She spat her cigarette away, laughing as loudly as she could without bothering the people in the other rooms who were actually sleeping. It took her a long while to calm down, and when she did, she saw Sean smiling.

“What did I tell you about being too thirsty?”

He shook his head, laughing slightly. “I know. It just felt like a good opportunity to finally say it,” he said. “You looked like you needed the laugh, too.”

She made herself comfortable again, laying on her side so they were face to face.

“I did, actually,” Lyla said. “Thanks.”

For a second, they stayed silent, just looking at each other. And then she couldn’t stop herself, and she kissed him. It was slow and sweet, like most of their kisses were. They were still getting used to this new dynamic, and exploring was always a favorite of hers.

When they broke apart, she hugged Sean closely, laying her head on his chest.

“I’m so glad you’re here,” he whispered. “I don’t know what we’d do without you.”

She didn’t feel like being snarky right now, so she whispered back, “You’d have done just fine, Sean. I know it.”

“Maybe,” he said, running his fingers through her hair. It was so knotted, she missed having a hairbrush available all the time. “But then we wouldn’t be here now, would we? I can’t imagine a world where everything I’ve ever loved was…gone…and you weren’t here. What would have happened to me, Lyla? What if I…if Daniel…we couldn’t have…”

She kissed him again. “Don’t about think about this, okay? I’m here. Unless one of us can time travel and decides to change stuff, I’m always going to be here.”

He laughed before kissing her back. “Yeah, you’re right. I love you, Lyla.”

“And I love you, Sean.”

Their moment was broken when Mushroom started barking and scratching at the glass door behind them. She sighed and got up from the floor, opening the door and bending down to pet their puppy.

“Are you jealous, Shroom?” She asked, cooing. “Aww, you want kisses, too?”

Sean got up as well, ushering them all back inside the room. “Never thought I’d see the day Lyla Park was talking to a dog…”

“Shut up,” she rebuffed, laughing. “Shroom isn’t just a dog. She’s the best dog in the world.”

“Yeah, and she likes interrupting important stuff,” he said with a groan.

After they closed the outside door again, Lyla jumped on her bed and patted it. Mushroom jumped by her side, wiggling her tail excitedly.

“You could sleep here with me, but it looks like our puppy was faster.”

It was terribly funny, how quickly he grabbed Mushroom and put her on Daniel’s bed before sitting by Lyla’s side.

“Looks like that problem was solved already,” he said, smiling.

She slapped his arm playfully, though she did offer him another kiss.

“No funny business, though,” she said. “Daniel is right there and we don’t want to traumatize him. Or Shroom.”

“Whatever,” Sean said, adjusting both of them so they could cuddle. “Just sleeping together is more than amazing, Lyla. It makes me feel…safe.”

She hugged his torso. “So you can get prepared to always feel safe, because we can keep doing this forever.”

 

* * *

 

Unfortunately for them, they couldn’t keep doing it forever. Or, at least, they couldn’t do it without getting in trouble. Claire and Stephen, Sean and Daniel’s grandparents, were ridiculously religious and, therefore, didn’t want Lyla to sleep in the same room as the boys. They cleaned Karen’s old room in a hurry and declared Lyla would have to sleep there.

She hated it, especially because of what it meant. She didn’t want to sleep in the same place as the person who hurt her friends did once upon a time. She almost wished they could have stayed with Brody more, because she really didn’t like the Reynolds. Of course, they couldn’t keep depending on Brody, the poor guy already helped them too much.

In the end, Lyla waited most days until Claire and Stephen were asleep to swiftly sneak into the boys’ room and sleep in the middle of the two, snuggling. Before dawn, she’d wake up and move back to Karen’s room. It wasn’t the ideal situation, but it was the best she could do. She just hoped Claire didn’t figure it out, otherwise she’d be in so much trouble…

Today it was especially cold when she woke up, though that wasn’t surprising. Winter was approaching fast, and they still needed to make plans on where they were supposed to go next. They couldn’t stay with the Reynolds forever, after all.

When Lyla moved to get up from the bed and go back to “her” room, the boys still looked asleep. However, as soon as her feet touched the cold floor, she felt Sean’s hand flying to hers, holding onto it.

“Stay, please,” he muttered, still half asleep.

She laughed and kissed his cheek. “Only if you want your grandmother to kick us out of the house.”

“Who cares about the old bat…” he mumbled. “I just want to sleep with you for once, like we used to.”

“We did. And now I’m waking up.” She slapped his hand gently until he let her go. “Go back to sleep, okay? I’ll see you later. Love you.”

“Love you, too,” he said before turning around, snoring once again. He laughed at how fast Daniel could fall asleep, but he was the same. Sometimes, he was worse than Daniel.

Lyla was still smiling when she made it back to Karen’s room, happy that things seemed to be going back to normal. Whatever normal was these days, really.

Her smile dropped when she opened the door, though, because Claire was there, sitting in her bed, her arms crossed sternly.

“Did you honestly believe I wasn’t a teenager once, too?” Claire asked, though she didn’t smile. Instead, she patted the bed, inviting—demanding—Lyla to sit with her.

“It really wasn’t like that,” Lyla said defensively, crossing her own arms. “We were just sleeping. Daniel was there, for God’s sake!”

Then, surprisingly, Claire opened a small smile. “I know, dear. I’ve seen you. I’ll admit I was worried at first, but I’ve seen you with them more than once.”

Lyla coughed, her face reddening. “What?”

“Oh, you’re living in my house. And I’ve raised a teenager once, I know how these things work. But now…you’ve made me realize that sometimes things aren’t the way they seem. I apologize for judging you. The three of you.”

“It’s…uh, okay.”

God, she sounded like Sean. Not knowing what to say, blushing and looking away. It was a reaction he’d have had, not her. And yet, Claire managed to get this out of her.

“I still don’t think it’s right,” Claire added. “But…I understand why you do it. And I’ve noticed…you don’t like this room. You don’t like Karen or…what she represents.”

“I hate her,” she said bluntly. “She hurt them, the boys and Esteban…and you and your husband…so much. She didn’t even seem to care about it.”

“Yes,” Claire said with a nod. “There are days I hate my daughter for what she did, too. But what is done is done. All we can do…is forgive and move on. It’s what I’m trying to do.”

“I guess you’re much better than all of us, then. It’s hard for them, especially Sean.”

“I know. I…hope one day things will make sense. To all of us.” Claire sighed and got up from the bed. “Until then, there’s not much we can do. I’ll let you go back to sleep now.”

Lyla cleared her throat. “Would it, uh, be okay to go back to the boys’ room?”

Claire looked sternly at her for a long minute, probably searching for something in her face, until she nodded.

“Go,” she said, opening the door again. “I’ll take Mushroom for a walk. We had a dog before, I miss her so much…the little Shroom has been keeping me company, and I appreciate it very much.”

As if on a cue, Mushroom showed up as soon as Claire opened the door, happily nudging Claire until they went downstairs. Lyla watched with a smile. Mushroom was a clever dog, always understanding when people needed her company, when they needed someone to ground them in the present. Maybe that was why she usually hang around Daniel so much.

If Mushroom liked Claire this much, though, the woman couldn’t be so bad.

When Lyla snuggled with her boys again, feeling warm and safe, she nodded to herself. Yes, Claire was definitely…someone interesting, someone caring.

 

* * *

 

As Christmas approached, they relaxed more and more. Claire and Stephen didn’t want any of them to go outside, the risk of someone seeing them and warning the police still too big. Yet, when they went to the church on Sundays, Daniel would sneak out to hang with the Reynolds’ neighbor, a young boy named Chris Eriksen. Lyla didn’t get to talk a lot with him, but from what she heard from Daniel, he was a good boy.

She was also happy that Daniel got to hang out with a normal boy, someone who didn’t have…powers…or someone who wasn’t related to him. At this point, she already pretty much considered herself related to him. He was always her little brother, the one she’s always wanted but never had.

Sunday mornings were her favorite because of something else, too: that was when she and Sean had the house to themselves. They could kiss, smoke, talk about anything they wanted. It was almost normal, almost like what they did before everything went to shit.

She was happy.

Even when she contacted her mother, Yu-Jin, with a burner phone to let her know she was okay and had to hear from her mother that if she didn’t come back soon, she’d be thrown on Bellevue again, Lyla couldn’t hide her feelings.

She was happy.

It was all that mattered.

 

* * *

 

And then...everything went to shit once again.

Lyla wanted to laugh, wanted to say they saw it coming. They didn’t, of course. How could they? How could they believe things would go terribly wrong when they were so happy? When Daniel had a friend again, when she and Sean gave themselves to each other for the first time, when everything was _normal?_

The day started normal enough, with the three of them playing in the snow in the Reynolds’ backyard. Daniel was waiting for Chris to show up with some toys, she and Sean were sitting on a bench, petting Mushroom. It was fine.

And then it wasn’t.

Instead of coming from the inside of his home like he usually did, Chris Eriksen surprised Daniel by revealing himself to be hidden in his tree house. They laughed at each other and they were happy and then—

—then Chris was falling, his arms flailing helplessly in the air—

—it happened in slow motion, exactly like when Esteban died and she got a scar on her forehead and—

—and Chris stopped falling.

In front of them, Daniel had his hand raised, his face scrunched in concentration while he kept Chris in the air. He was sweating, biting his lip—another human being was so much heavier than everything he’s ever tried to lift. But it worked.

Gently, while Lyla, Sean and Shroom held their breaths, Daniel lowered Chris to the ground.

“Oh!” Chris exclaimed, putting himself to his feet hurriedly. “W-what was that?”

“Uh...” Daniel stuttered, looking at Sean and Lyla for help. “I didn’t see anything.”

“No way!” Chris insisted. “You did this, I saw it! Y-you’re the real superhero, Daniel! You’re the one who can make stuff happen with your mind!”

“I...”

In a second, Sean was there as well, wrapping one arm around Daniel to lead him back inside. “C’mon, Chris, that was nothing,” he tried.

Chris wouldn’t give up, though. While he didn’t look any less excited, his smile softened. “I won’t tell anyone what I saw, Sean. It’s okay. You’re...you’re my friends. I don’t have many friends, I wouldn’t expose you...”

“Really?” Daniel asked, putting himself away from Sean for a bit. “You won’t tell?”

“Never,” Chris promised. “It’s our secret.”

He crossed his arms in an “x” over his head and Daniel mimicked the act.

“Okay, but we need to go inside now,” Sean insisted, and this time Daniel complied.

Lyla picked Mushroom up and went to say goodbye to Chris, allowing him to pet their puppy.

“Thank you,” she whispered. “You’re the best, dude.”

Chris grinned and ran back to his house. Smiling as well, Lyla went to the Reynolds’ house, arriving just in time to see Sean arguing with Daniel about their “rules.”

“…so you need to remember, Daniel, what happens if you spin a plate in a dinner?” Sean was saying.

Daniel sighed. “People will freak out.”

“And if they freak out, what do they do?”

“They call the cops.”

Sean nodded to his brother. “And the second rule is?”

“Don’t…uh…talk about it.”

“AKA the most important rule, since it’s so hard for you,” Sean said with a sigh. “Come on. The final rule now.”

“Hmm…avoid danger?”

“Run from danger,” Sean said, sternly. “You see something sketchy, you run away.”

“I don’t get it,” Daniel complained. “With my power, I could help us.”

Lyla cleared her throat, and the brothers turned to look at her.

“Your power should be used when we have no other options,” Lyla said. “If one of us is in danger, then it’s okay. Otherwise, you should do something else first.”

Daniel nodded. Then turned to Sean. “Maybe if I…if I had my powers before…Dad could still…be here…”

Sean hugged his brother close. “No, Daniel. That shit was…completely out of your control.”

When she set Shroom down, the puppy ran towards the boys, interrupting their chat. Lyla sighed, coming to sit by their side on the couch.

“Sean’s right,” she told Daniel, hugging him. “It wasn’t your fault. It was...no one’s fault. You shouldn’t blame yourself, Daniel. Besides, you just saved Chris. That has to count to something, right?”

“I guess...” Daniel mumbled, hiding his face in her shoulders. “I just wish I could’ve made a difference before, too.”

“Hey,” Sean said, hugging Daniel’s other side. “What matters is that you can make a difference now. With us.”

Daniel sighed, but nodded. “Okay.”

 

* * *

 

Later that day, someone knocked on their door.

A police officer.

Of course.

Someone was passing by and saw them playing with Chris and...and called the cops, because apparently there was a reward for anyone who managed to capture them. Claire and Stephen started running around, talking to each and trying to decide the best course of action.

“What are we gonna do, Lyla?” Daniel asked her, almost cowering.

“Go hide in the garage!” Stephen announced.

Sean shook his head, though. “No! No way! If the police searches the house, that makes the two of you accomplices.”

“Get your bags and go out the backdoor,” Claire suddenly said, schooling her features into something neutral. “I will distract him.”

“But what about Mushroom?” Daniel asked, and the puppy barked in return. “We can’t leave her behind!”

Shroom made the decision for him, though, when she laid by Claire’s feet.

“Daniel, it’ll be safer for her here,” Lyla said. “And we can come back for her later. When we’re safe. Right, Claire?”

“Of course,” Claire answered, picking Mushroom up and hugging the puppy. “I’ll take good care of her for you. We’ll be waiting for when you can come back.”

“Thank you for everything,” Lyla said, hugging Claire and then Stephen. “I’m sorry we couldn’t stay more…like you wanted…but you’ve helped so much…”

“Write to us when possible,” Stephen said. “Let us know you’re okay. But now go. Go!”

“Take care of each other,” Claire whispered, tears beginning to appear in her eyes. “We love you.”

Just as Claire went to open the door, Sean ushered both Lyla and Daniel towards the backyard.

“Go with him and wait for me,” he instructed. “I’ll go upstairs and grab our bags!”

“Bye, Shroom…” Daniel said sadly, waving to their puppy. Mushroom barked back, wiggling her tail. “I’ll see you soon.”

“Thank you for taking care of us,” Lyla whispered, getting Shroom’s attention. She got a bark as well, and couldn’t help the strangled sob that left her. “Goodbye.”

It didn’t take long until they had everything with them and started running, climbing Chris’ fence to avoid attention. Another cop car was approaching fast, but so far it didn’t look like they saw them here.

When they made it to the Eriksen’s yard, Chris was on his tree house’s swing. The boy looked up, startled, and ran towards them.

“You’re leaving?” He asked Daniel. “What happened?”

“I’m sorry,” Daniel said, looking down. “I wish we could stay.”

“You better come back,” Chris said. He untied his Captain Spirit cape and handed it to Daniel with a sad smile. “Here, take it. You’re the superhero, after all.”

Daniel smiled, hugging the cape close to his chest. “Thanks, Chris. This is super cool! Like you.”

“C’mon now, we have to go,” Sean said, tugging on Daniel’s hand to get them moving again.

Chris gestured towards the woods on their side. “Take the Troll Forest shortcut...It's right through there...Nobody will find you!”

“You’re the absolute best, Chris,” Lyla said before kissing his cheek.

“You rock,” Sean agreed.

As the ran towards the shortcut, Chris made it to his tree house and made the Spirit squad pose. Daniel made it back, smiling.

And then they ran away.

 

* * *

 

They only stopped when they reached a train. Sean had the crazy idea of jumping on it, and it…surprisingly worked. They sighed—in relief, maybe, but also because they were all so tired—and rested against the wagon that was now giving them a ride.

“Sean…I'm tired of running away...I don't want to be a superhero anymore...” Daniel groaned.

“You don't have to use your power, if you don't want to.”

Daniel nodded. “I know but...Sometimes I can help and…how do I know when to use it?”

“You don’t,” Sean said, wrapping one arm around Daniel. “You can only trust your gut and listen to Lyla and I. We’re here to take care of you.”

Lyla joined their hug. “We’ll always be here. Always.”

“Do you think we’ll see Grandma and Grandpa again? And Mushroom?” Daniel asked her.

She sighed. “I don’t know, Daniel. Maybe. I hope so.”

“Okay,” he said. “Where are we going now?”

“I was thinking…” Sean started, making both Lyla and Daniel turn to him. “We could go to Mexico. Dad had a place in there, in Puerto Lobos…we could live there. At least until everything is calmer.”

“I like this,” Lyla said, resting her head on his shoulder. He kissed her hair. “A place that can be ours…sounds like a dream.”

“Yeah,” Daniel agreed. “And I think it’d make us get closer to Dad. It’ll be like he’s still with us. Right?”

“Yeah, Daniel. You’re right,” Sean said.

The three of them kept each other close, their bond stronger than ever. They’d be okay.

As long as they were together, they’d be okay.

With the wind blowing her hair, Lyla closed her eyes, ready for whatever fate would throw at them next.

**Author's Note:**

> Ooooh, there we go. It’s done now. That was one interesting ride! Maybe when we have other episodes I’ll continue this. For now, though, this is it. Hope you enjoyed it! <3


End file.
